Dylan F. Thomas was recently guest faculty at Yale University, staging eight Opera Scenes and teaching his unique acting method, The Dressler Technique, in “Acting for Opera” for the graduate Opera Studies students. Mr. Thomas is Opera Program Manager for the GRAMMY-winning National Children’s Chorus’s youth opera program, National Youth Opera Academy (formerly Vail Opera Camp), where he teaches acting and co-directs the fully staged operas during the summer opera camp.
Metropolitan Opera soprano Ana Maria Martinez described Dylan F. Thomas as “thinking out of the box in an intriguing and captivating way… an inspiring director and mentor, particularly for young artists.” Baritone Quinn Kelsey, of the Lyric Opera of Chicago and the Metropolitan Opera, says that Thomas, “utilized his own intuitive twists on the storyline of certain pieces to give me as a singer a different perspective of my interpretation”. Kelsey says that Thomas’ unique new production and staging concepts “… could prove quite useful in bringing more and more audiences back to the opera. Mr. Thomas’ insight just seems to me to be a very healthy way to reenergize opera productions.”
Dylan F. Thomas is the Co-Founder of Valley Opera & Performing Arts in Los Angeles’ San Fernando Valley, currently in its 18th season, where he has directed full productions of countless operas, as well as concerts featuring such artists as GRAMMY-nominated Johnathan McCullough, pop superstar Deniece Williams, Metropolitan Opera tenor Rodell Rosel, and internationally renowned baritone Edward Nelson.
For the Pacific Symphony in Costa Mesa, CA, Thomas has written and directed numerous shows for the Family Musical Mornings series, including A Halloween Spooktacular (2009 and 2010), Superheroes! (2010), and scripted introductions to Hansel and Gretel (2012) and Mozart’s The Magic Flute (2009). He also wrote and directed a Casablanca-themed show for the Pacific Symphony’s prestigious annual Gala.
Mr. Thomas directed the semi-staged concert Opera Under the Stars at Orange County’s Opera Pacific, which featured super-stars Ana Maria Martinez and Quinn Kelsey performing operatic favorites with the Opera Pacific Orchestra under the baton of Maestro John DeMain. Thomas worked as the outreach stage director at Opera Pacific, where he staged the educational outreach show entitled Fun With Opera. He wrote and directed Opera Soup for Opera Pacific’s Opera in the Park presentation, and directed The Tinker of Tivoli for their Opera Camp program, for which he also acted as Program Director.
Mr. Thomas directed a new production of Pagliacci at Opera Fairbanks in Alaska (2018), where he collaborated with Music Director, Gregory Buchalter, who also conducts at the Metropolitan Opera and around the world. Thomas is also one of the creators of a brand new American Opera entitled Marie’s Orchard, for which he conceptualized the story, inspired by Willa Cather’s novel “O Pioneers!”, penned the libretto, and directed the world premiere.
As a singer and actor, Thomas has performed extensively in the operatic, musical theater, jazz, and theater genres. Notable opera roles include Cavaradossi (Tosca), Alfred (Die Fledermaus), Alfredo (La traviata), Pinkerton (Madama Butterfly), and Don Jose (Carmen). As a Festival Artist at Utah Festival Opera and Musical Theater, Thomas covered the role of Otello in Verdi’s dramatic opera, and performed the musical theater roles of King Francis in Rex by Rodgers and Harnick, and Constable in Fiddler on the Roof. For ten months during 2006, Thomas was engaged as a performer in three different variety shows at Universal Studios in Osaka, Japan. There he performed not only opera repertoire, but musical theater and jazz as well. He was the tenor soloist in the holiday spectacular, A White Christmas Carol, seen by upwards of 40,000 people each performance, in addition to an operatic street theater show and various holiday jazz shows.
As a passionate educator, Thomas has taught every grade level from TK through graduate studies. Specializing in acting and performance, he maintains a teaching studio through VOPA, offering individual, small group, and large group classes for performers in all genres of theater — opera, musical theater, and plays.
Dylan F. Thomas 